Semantics and Psychology of Spirituality A Cross-Cultural Analysis [Hardcover]

This book examines what people mean when they say they are spiritual. It looks at the semantics of spirituality, the visibility of reasons for spiritual preference in biographies, in psychological dispositions, in cultural differences between Germany and the US, and in gender differences. It also examines the kind of biographical consequences that are associated with spirituality. The book reports the results of an online-questionnaire filled out by 773 respondents in Germany and 1113 in the US, personal interviews with a selected group of more than 100 persons, and an experiment. Based on the data collected, it reports results that are relevant for a number of scientific and practical disciplines. It makes a contribution to the semantics of everyday religious language and to the cross-cultural study of religion and to many related fields as well, because spirituality is evaluated in relation to personality, mysticism, well-being, religious styles, generativity, attachment, biography and atheism. The book draws attention to the  new and ever changing  ways in which people give names to their ultimate concern and symbolize their experiences of transcendence.

Preface.- Introduction.- Part I. Points of Departure.- Chapter 1. Understanding Spirituality  Conceptual Considerations; Heinz?Streib and Ralph W. Hood Jr..- Chapter 2. Deconversion and ''Spirituality'' - Migrations in the Religious Field; Heinz Streib, Ralph W. Hood, Jr.,?and Barbara Keller.- Chapter 3. Investigating ''Spirituality'': Between Survey Data and the Study of Biographies; Heinz Streib, Constantin Klein and Ralp W. Hood Jr.- Chapter 4. Design, Methods and Sample Characteristics of the Bielefeld-Based Cross-Cultural Study of ''Spirituality''; Barbara Keller, Heinz Streib, Christopher Silver, Constantin Kleinand Ralph W. Hood Jr.-?Chapter 5. Who is Spiritual?; Barbara Keller, Constantin Kleinand, Anne Swhajor-Biesemann and Heinz Streib.-?- Part II. Senmantics of ''Spirituality''lÓ%